Step 4: Pursuit of Tea

For the past couple weeks I have been wanting to try Matcha on it's own. Perhaps it's been longer than that though, since it is one of the main things that i think of when i think about Japan. Regardless of the time frame however, i've been searching for Matcha Starter Kit. Why do you need a kit, you might ponder. Matcha is different from other loose leaf teas.

Matcha is actually a very finely ground powdered leaf. To prepare it you whisk the powdered tea with water. So you need a few specialty items in order to properly enjoy matcha.

1.- You must have the Tea.
2.- A chasen, or bamboo whisk
3.- A bowl, preferably a Chawan, or Tea-Bowl
4.- A Tea Scoop or Chasaku

Many places offer such packages, and so that others may avoid the amount of searching that i went through i shall recount the places as well as the items that they offer and their price before shipping.

Matcha Source---Basic Kit $54---With bowl $75
30g of Organic Matcha, 100 prong whisk, a chasaku, and a tea sifter-- if you choose to get a bowl you have a choice of two
----Seems a bit expensive and i'm not really into organic...

In Pursuit of Tea---Basic Kit $56--Deluxe Kit $95
20g of Thin Grade Matcha, a small whisk, a ceramic bowl--The deluxe kit includes a nicer bowl, better whisk, a whisk stand (to protect the tines) and a Chasaku.
----Still expensive

The Tea Smith---Basic Kit $54.95
"premium grade" Matcha, 'Authentic' whisk, 'handmade' bowl and 'delicate' chasaku.
----Not enough detail in the description to make me want to even consider this as an option.

Yuuki-cha---Basic Kit $30
100 prong whisk, choice between 4 different bowls, and choice between two different chasaku. There is also a travel kit for the same price that gives you a transportable whisk and chasaku as well as a choice between two travel bowls. all of it comes in a nice little bag.
----Getting to choose my own tea would be nice.

Ippodo---Basic Kit $41.50~abt (3,800 Yen)
20g of their matcha, Whisk, Chasaku, bowl, and teacloth.
----They are known for their green tea, but shipping would increase the price.

O-Cha---Build a Kit $53.84-$175--You choose the items that you want and get 10% off
30g of tea (5 to choose from), whisk (2 to choose from), a Chasaku, a tea-bowl (8 to choose from), you can also choose an accesory (such as a whisk stand) and extra matcha and get 10% off on those items as well.
----I like being able to choose the bowl and tea, they are also known for their green tea, but still pricey

Hibiki-an--- Basic Kit $105-- Soheki Kit $174
40g of their superior grade matcha, whisk, chasaku, their most basic bowl, a whisk stand. The Soheki kit includes a nicer bowl, a higer grade matcha, and a matcha sifter
----expensive like whoa. But nice kit. Known for their green teas.

Koyama-en---Eco-set $63 (5,775 Yen)
20g of Yugen Matcha, Bowl, whisk, chasaku, towel.
----Pricey, and harder to order...

Maiko--- Matcha for Two $105 (9,450 Yen)
40g of Matcha, 2 bowls, whisk, chasaku.
----Known for their wide selection of green teas, but i don't need two bowls

Den's Tea---$50-$73
The Travel kit is the cheapest, it comes with small whisk and collapsible Chasaku, as well as a crystalline clear bowl and 20 g of matcha. all of it in a travel bag. the other sets include the same items only with different bowls, a full sized whisk, and full sized chasaku.
----I've ordered with them before, they're known for green teas, and shipping would be free.

From looking at these places i've narrowed the choices down to Yuuki-cha, Den's tea, Ippodo, and O-cha. I'm still weighing the options but i'll let ya'll know what i end up with :3

Cup 7-- Genmaicha Extra Green

Forgive the blurry picture i can't seem to get the color of this right and have a stable image :/

but in any case, strap in to your seat ladies and gents because today we're going into the realm of Japanese Greens.

Japan is known for their green tea. In Japanese language the word for tea "cha" or "o-cha" refers to green tea, not to black. If you want a different kind of tea other than green you have to specify which kind, or else you'll get green tea. For centuries their samurai have created and performed the art of the tea ceremony, "chado". It developed alongside Noh theater and the Bunraku (puppet plays).

The art of the tea ceremony was to help Samurai appreciate the beauty in simple and imperfect things as well as to train their minds and bodies into a particular pattern of activities. While today the tea ceremony is mostly thought of as an art for females, it originated as a male-dominated activity. The Samurai learned about tea from Buddhist monks who used the powdered matcha in their religious ceremonies. As the Samurai started to study Buddhism they also learned about tea and made it into a warrior's art.

Matcha is powdered green tea. The leaves are very finely ground and then mixed with water and whisked to a frothy neon-green beverage. But what does matcha have to do with this Genmaicha?

Genmaicha is green tea with brown roasted rice. Many kinds of genmaicha have matcha added to it to improve it's taste and color. This Genmaicha Extra Green has matcha added to make it have a very bright color and a stronger flavor.

Genmaicha was originally a drink for the poor, since the rice that was mixed with the tea made it cheaper. However, now a days it is drunk by all.

This tea has the smell of freshly made rice when brewed. The taste too is influenced by the rice and is kind of starchy. While this tea is very green in color it also tastes pretty green. It's sweet but yet at the same time it tastes like i've been eating vegetables and nuts.

While this tea really only brings the bang of the matcha in taste and color on the first brew, the following few brews still have a good genmaicha flavor and smell. makes me want to eat some toast, yum.

This Tea is one of the ones that i got in my Den's Tea Sampler pack. The Sampler Pack, which can be found HERE, gives you four different kind of loose teas to try, as well as two of their bagged teas. It also comes with a wide variety of literature on green teas and the health benefits of green tea. For 3 bucks it's not a bad deal, and it gets refunded on your next order over $15. Although i personally didn't much care for 2/4 loose teas (too vegetal) on the first time around, it was a really good way to try several varieties and to gain a greater understanding of the world of green teas.

Don't be too hasty to go right now and order up a lot of preme-o japanese greens though. The picking season for greens will be here soon ( March and April usually) and you'll be able to snap up some fresh green deliciousness!

Kind-Green Tea
Brew Time-Less than a minute
Water Temp-170* or there abouts
Color- Neon green
Fragrance- nutty and ricey
Taste-slightly bitter yet sweet and starchy
Best during-early afternoon
Style- Loose
Price per oz- $2.12
Place bought- Den's Tea
Overall- yum~